Chicozapote: what it is, taste and its link to chewing gum

What is it?

The chicozapote is one of the most significant fruits of the Mexican tropics and one of the few plants that has given the world not only a food but also an industrial product of global reach: chewing gum (chicle). It is a round or oval fruit, about six to ten centimetres in diameter, with rough cinnamon-brown skin and inner pulp ranging from light brown to reddish, grainy but soft, incredibly sweet and aromatic, with a flavour that evokes brown sugar, vanilla and ripe pear. It contains three to twelve shiny, black, elongated and flattened seeds, which are discarded. It is eaten mainly fresh, by opening the fruit and eating the pulp with a spoon, though it is also used for jams, sweets, lollies, ice creams and shakes. The harvest season runs from February to June. The milky sap of the tree, called chicle, is extracted by controlled incisions in the trunk and processed to obtain the raw material of the original chewing gum.

Origin and history

The chicozapote is native to Mesoamerica, particularly the Yucatán Peninsula, Belize, Guatemala and parts of Central America, where its use dates back to the Maya civilisation. The Maya not only ate the fruit but also extracted the sap of the tree to chew it, a custom documented in codices and colonial chronicles. The name chicozapote comes from the Nahuatl tzicotzapotl, where tzicotl means sticky and tzapotl, zapote or sweet fruit. The word chicle, derived from the Nahuatl tzictli, travelled the world through the English 'chewing gum', but its origin lies in these Mexican trees. In the 19th century, the Mexican general Antonio López de Santa Anna, in exile in New York in 1869, took with him pieces of raw chicle to chew. He met the American inventor Thomas Adams, to whom he tried to sell the chicle as a substitute for industrial rubber. Adams failed in that application but discovered its potential as a commercial chewing gum and founded the first modern chewing-gum factory in 1871, giving rise to a global industry. During the 20th century, the Yucatán Peninsula experienced an economic boom in natural chicle, with thousands of chicleros gathering sap in the forests. The introduction of synthetic gums in the 1950s and 60s dramatically reduced demand, but today there are initiatives such as Chicza to revive sustainable, certified natural chicle.

Characteristic ingredients

The chicozapote is Manilkara zapota, an evergreen tree of the family Sapotaceae that can reach thirty metres tall and live more than a hundred years. The fruit is harvested green and ripens at room temperature; it is ready when the skin feels slightly soft to the touch. It is opened with a knife or cut in half; the pulp is eaten with a spoon, discarding the black, flattened seeds. The grainy texture is due to sclereid cells similar to those of the pear, and the sweetness can be very intense, with high levels of natural sugars (fructose, glucose and sucrose). It contains vitamins A and C, iron, magnesium, fibre and antioxidants. The sap or chicle is extracted by zigzag incisions in the trunk of the tree, without felling the tree, a traditional Maya-Yucatec technique; the sap is boiled to concentrate it and moulded into blocks for export. The tree is grown in Yucatán, Quintana Roo, Campeche, Veracruz and other tropical areas of Mexico. In cooking, besides being eaten fresh, the chicozapote is used in aguas frescas, ice creams, lollies, jams, traditional sweets, ate (fruit paste) and mousse. The wood of the tree, called chicozapote or chiquibul, is extremely hard and durable, used historically for Maya constructions such as the beams of Tikal and Chichén Itzá, which have survived more than a thousand years.

Cultural significance

The chicozapote is part of the biocultural heritage of the Yucatán Peninsula and of the Maya peoples, linked both to traditional food and to the chicle industry. Friar Diego de Landa, in his Relaci��n de las cosas de Yucatán (16th century), mentions the use of chicle by the Maya as an everyday custom. The chicle activity gave rise to a unique rural culture in Quintana Roo and Campeche, with its own codes, tools and forest camps, documented by anthropologists such as Eric Villanueva and Lorelle Crocker. The Chicza cooperative, made up of more than 2,000 Maya chicleros of Quintana Roo, today produces certified organic and fair-trade natural chicle that is exported to Europe and Asia, reactivating a millennia-old tradition with sustainability criteria. Traditional Mexican Cuisine, inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2010, includes this kind of tropical fruit as part of the national gastronomic heritage. Economically, the chicozapote sustains tropical fruit production in several Mexican states, and the wood, known as chiquibul, remains a valued material in traditional construction and crafts. The chicozapote-chicle connection is a unique story where a Mexican fruit gave its name and raw material to a global multi-million-dollar industry.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between chicozapote and mamey?

Both are zapotes but of different genera. The chicozapote (Manilkara zapota) has rough brown skin, grainy and very sweet brown-reddish pulp, with small black seeds. The mamey (Pouteria sapota) is larger, elongated, with rough brown skin and creamy, bright orange-red pulp and a single large central seed. Their flavours and textures are notably different.

What does chicozapote taste like?

The ripe pulp is incredibly sweet, with a flavour combining brown sugar, vanilla, ripe pear and a touch of cinnamon. The texture is grainy like the pear, with fine crunchy cells and a generally soft, honeyed consistency. The aroma is sweet and caramel-vanilla. When well ripened, it almost seems like a natural dessert with no need for added sugar. If eaten green, it is astringent and rough.

How is chicozapote served?

It is served fresh, halved and with the pulp eaten with a spoon, removing the seeds. It is also prepared in aguas frescas by blending the pulp with water and a little ice, in artisanal ice creams and lollies, in jams, traditional Yucatecan sweets and mousse. In Yucatán it is also used in some sweet salsas and in breads. It is ideal as a dessert on its own, without seasonings, for its intense natural sweetness.

Where does chicozapote come from?

It is native to Mesoamerica, particularly the Yucatán Peninsula, Belize, Guatemala and Central America, where the Maya cultivated and consumed it from pre-Hispanic times. They also extracted its sap (chicle) to chew it. The names chicozapote and chicle come from the Nahuatl tzicotzapotl and tzictli. Today it is grown in tropical states of Mexico such as Yucatán, Quintana Roo, Campeche and Veracruz.